Life from the viewpoint of someone who needs to be in three four places at once.

Sunday, November 09, 2008

Wardrobe Refashion Update

My six months of Wardrobe Refashion is drawing to a close. I shopped more than I had initially planned. I blame Jesse Garza and Joe Lupo, authors of Nothing to Wear?

The whole finding your style archetype and sticking to it didn't really work for me and several of the people who panned the book on Amazon. But several things they wrote actually resonated with me.

Most women think they are one to two sizes larger than their "ideal" size. They will make do with the clothes they have now and go shopping again when they are their ideal size. We shouldn't wait years--or a whole lifetime. We should always have clothes that fit and are appropriate for the life we live.

Once I culled the things that I will never fit into again, and set aside the stuff I might fit into after hitting the gym more frequently (5 pounds down, another 5 to go. Yay!), I realized why I wear the same things over and over again.

They also mention buying too much "frosting" and not enough "cake". That is, many people buy pretty things that attract them, and don't pay attention to the backbones of their wardrobes. I actually have plenty of cake in my wardrobe, but they don't fit the body I have today. For instance, I had no belts that fit my post-baby waist.

My shoe wardrobe was similarly outdated. I had always collected great, colorful, iconoclastic shoes that were not very comfortable. I also had athletic shoes for several sports, but I didn't have many shoes suitable for work. I bought a few pairs when I left school and started working, over a decade ago. They look very, very tired, despite being repaired several times. Weekdays, I had the choice of decrepit shoes, uncomfortable shoes, or way too casual athletic shoes or sandals. Is that the image I want to project?

Since I learned that I have PsA, I have to accept that I will never "break in" shoes that rub. They will break me instead. The same goes for shoes with heels that are higher than ~1.5 inches. A pair of shoes will not work for me if they send me to physical therapy three times a week. I don't have enough time for the things that are on my plate already, never mind adding 1.5 hour appointments plus commuting time 3 times per week.

Shopping for comfortable and professional shoes is not an easy task. But I did buy a couple of great flat boots this year. Iris and I adore this short black leather boot and a pair of tall black suede ones. I couldn't find a picture of it online, but they look similar to these, only they are Lauren instead of Ralph Lauren and cost a lot less. And don't ask why I am taking fashion advice from an eight year old. I used to be a sales lady in "better sportswear" at Bullock's (now owned by Macy's) and a wardrobe mistress at Berkeley Shakespeare (now California Shakespeare). Iris still insists that I know nothing about fashion.

OMG, what kind of lousy mommy blogger would neglect to mention her child's birthday?

In the spirit of creative reuse, the 3 candle was used 3 times. When Iris' cousin visited last month, we reused the candle for her 3rd birthday cake. Mark could not find an 8 candle at the supermarket so we did some quick arithmetic. Way to put that MIT education to use!

4 comments:

I own that same book, and I think I owe it to myself to re-read it and take away some good lessons. I'm so guilty of making do with my "fat clothing" and not giving my body the nice clothing it deserves, regardless of size. Whether there is more or me or less of me, don't I deserve to look like me and feel divine in my clothing? Yes!Happy Birthday to Iris. Very clever candle use/re-use!

I haven't read that book yet, but I love to read those style/fashion/wardrobe books, so I shall check into it. I am definitely guilty of the "frosting" not "cake" problem.

I have also put off a few things as I am in weight transition mode, kind of in fits and starts. The first 20 are gone, but the next five have been slowly yo-yoing as we have been in a stressful couple of weeks with tests and yet new (minor) medical problems. Still I think that looking good at any weight is important and I am trying to keep outfits that look good at whatever stage I might be occupying. I just don't want to make something overly complicated or expensive until I either reach goal or stop actively pursuing it. There have been too many interruptions in life to make me want to put off looking good for some esoteric goal that may not take place.

I have been putting a few things aside that will be perhaps worth saving or altering. We'll see.

Yes, I do have the gene marker. I had been so scrupulous in avoiding skin irritants all my life that the joint involvement showed up years before anyone realized that my "contact dermatitis" was actually something quite a bit more severe than that.

Oddly, with one gene test, I went from being perceived as "high maintenance" to "incredibly stoic and upbeat". I also joined the ranks of the officially disabled. And if you are going to be disabled, you should have the good sense (like me) to come down with something recognized by the Social Security Adminstration (and hence insurance companies).